A Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft undergoing a test flight on December 21, 2017 in Zhukovsky, Moscow Region, Russia (Photo: Marina Lystseva/TASS)
Two Iranian airlines signed separate memorandums of intent with Russia’s major aircraft manufacturer Sukhoi to purchase Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ 100), Russian news agency TASS reported on April 26.
On April 25, during the Eurasia Airshow 2018 in Turkey, Iran Aseman Airlines and Iran Air Tours signed letters of intent to buy a total of 40 Sukhoi Superjet SSJ-100R passenger planes.
“The deadline is 2020, during two years we have to deliver these aircrafts”, President of the Sukhoi Civil Aircraft (SCA) company Alexander Rubtsov told reporters.
He added that the company is developing SSJ-100R – a new version of the plane. This modification is expected to increase the Russian part of components up to 50-60 %, according to Rubtsov. The main goal of the SSJ-100R creation is the import phase-out of the US elements and systems used in planes. Unless the modification, the deliveries to Iran are impossible without Washington’s permission.
The Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company founded in 2000 is dealing with manufacturing of Russia’s SSJ-100 airplane and its modifications and is affiliated with Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation.
In 2017, Russia sent an application to the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to receive the expert license for selling SSJ100 to Iran. However, the license is still not received. The question of the license remains an issue amid the growing confrontation between Russia and the USA as well as tensions in the US-Iranian relations.
Who cares about receiving an expert license for selling SSJ100 to Iran….from Washington? This is economic war, displace Boeing and Airbus from the SCO markets, and let SCO members trade within its economic boundaries.
It relates to US technology in the aircraft – that on-selling to Iran would run into US sanctions issues. Meaning the US would likely cease export licenses to Russia itself for that particular US aviation technology. This could be very inconvenient for Russia’s own existing aircraft fleets, that might need to replace parts of that operating system in future. Russia needs to design an alternative – or reverse engineer the existing technology and domestically manufacture to avoid the problem.
Yes they can reverse engineer or develop their own products, counter sanction US technology, stop selling them rocket engines so they can start with some basic understanding of their lack of technological needs. No more satellite launches for the time being.
I think it’s rather on the compatibility of the system used by Iranian aviation company and it’s airport.
Actually Russia and Iran should be replicating western technology and use reverse engineering as China has been doing for three decades to cut R&D costs. Iran and Russia have huge solid industrial base.
There is also a Chinese passanger jet.
As I said earlier, Russia have big big opportunities because Russians can build everything. If they are resilient and honest and work hard, they can replace most westerner products even the harder to build like microprocessor, commercial airline, hard disks, …
There is a massive economic opportunity for Russia and the west sanctions against Russia, Iran, Syria, …. make it very realistitic to achieive.
iran is planning something serious. I don’t think these planes will be used to transport passengers, instead of this, they will transport weapons and militia to shia countries
Unlikely, weapons are heavy, they’ll send them by truck. These planes are for passengers.
this is small jet for rich people
Russia and Iran are both large and rich nations with plenty of educated engineering and scientific talent, they should cooperate in manufacturing 100% hybrid aircraft and shun US and western technology or just reverse engineer as China does. Get permission from a bunch of US criminals and thugs is pointless.